Twister for fiber attenuating apparatus



Nov. 20, 1962 E. w. STARNES 3,064,413

TWISTER FOR FIBER ATTENUATING APPARATUS Filed NOV. 16, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet l III H 58 u 74 2 l' b2 Cg lghu :Qj

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EARL W. STARR/ES ATTORNEYS E. W. STARNES TWISTER FOR FIBER ATTENUATING APPARATUS Nov. 20, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 16, 1959 INVENTOR. EARL W. STARNES A TTORNE Y 3,064,413 TWISTER FOR FIBER ATTENUATIN G APPARATUS Earl W. Starnes, The Russell Mfg. Co., Alexander City, Aia. Filed Nev. 16, 1959, Ser. No. 853,376 3 Claims. ,(Cl. 57-5859) This invention relates to a so-called two for one twisting apparatus and more particularly to such apparatus embodying a twister for imposing a false twist in ballooning yarn that generates a figure of revolution about the apparatus. More particularly, this invention has particular utility when associated with apparatus disclosed in my prior Patent No. 2,867,967 issued January 13, 1959, although it is not limited to use with such apparatus.

In twisting apparatus covered by my above mentioned prior patent, the fiber passing from the attenuating rolls generates a figure of revolution that encircles the apparatus. The ring and traveler which were common in attenuating and twisting apparatus theretofore are completely eliminated by my apparatus and thus, tension exerted by the drag of rings and travelers is completely eliminated. The flyer in the two for one twisting apparatus of my previously mentioned patent may be rotated at high speeds with a minimum of breakage occurring in the ballooning yarn, which is the position at which the majority of breaks occur, as the only substantial tension exerted against the ballooning yarn is that exerted by air drag and centrifugal force which is greater, of course, at high speeds.

To increase the resistance of the ballooning yarn against breakage so as to provide even higher speeds in fiber twisting apparatus, the present invention provides a false twist in the ballooning yarn between the flyer and the package building apparatus so that the strength of the yarn in the balloon is increased.

In the operation of the apparatus shown in Patent No. 2,867,967 on American cotton yarn of a s size with a 1 inch staple, the turns per inch (t.p.i.) in the yarn at the flyer is approximately 7 and the turns per inch at the take up roller is approximately 14. Thus, the ballooning yarn between the take up roller and the fiyer has from 7 to 14 t.p.i.s (turns per inch) when a false twist is not imposed on the ballooning yarn.

The formula that has been used for many years to determine the twist at which cotton yarn obtains its maximum strength is as follows:

Turns per inch: (twist multiple) (cotton count) The twist multiple is a constant depending on the type of cotton and the staple length of the cotton. For instance, with a cotton yarn having a count of 10s and a twist multiple of 4, the turns per inch to obtain maximum strength would be (4) (V10) or 12.6. Warp twist yarns have commonly had a twist multiple of 4.60 and for 10s warp twist cotton yarn the turns per inch to obtain maximum strength would be 14.5. For s warp twist cotton yarns it would be 20.6. Thus, it is believed clear that ballooning yarn between the flyer and take up roll in my apparatus disclosed in Patent No. 2,867,967 does not normally obtain maximum strength at practically every point in the balloon particularly immediately upon leaving the tension member of the fiyer, although satisfactory results are obtained by such apparatus.

By providing a false twist in the ballooning yarn between the flyer and the take-up roll, I increase the turns per inch to obtain maximum strength in the ballooning yarn. The rotational speed of the false twister may be veried to impose the desired false twist in the ballooning yarn. For instance, with 10s cotton yarn having a twist multiple of 4.60 the false twister is rotated at a speed to give the yarn a t.p.i. of 14 upon leaving the tension mem- 3,964,413 Patented Nov. 20, 1962 her of the fiyer and 21 at the bottom of the false twister which provides substantially maximum strength in the ballooning yarn.

It is an object of the present invention to provide means to maintain a real twist in ballooning yarn and to provide a false twist in the overall system while the balloon gener ates a figure of revolution about two for one fiber twisting apparatus.

it is a further object of the present invention to position a false twister between the fiyer and the take-up roll in a two for one twisting apparatus so that the ballooning yarn between the flyer and the take-up roll is strengthened to increase its resistance to breakage by having a sufficient twist at all times.

An additional object of my invention is to provide shock absorbing means for the yarn to pass over after it leaves the false twister and before it reaches the take-up roll, together with means operatively connected to the shock absorbing means to indicate the tension in the yarn.

Apparatus embodying features of my invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this application, in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a two for one twisting and attenuating apparatus employing a false twister arid with the ballooning yarn generating a figure of revolution about the attenuating apparatus;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational View of the false twister used in the two for one apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary elevational view of the yarn guide means in the false twister shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and comprising a groove in a hollow motor shaft receiving a yarn strand;

FTG. 4 is a sectional view taken generally along line 44 of FIG. 3;

PEG. 5 is another embodiment of the yarn guide means in which an opening is provided through the wall of a hollow motor shaft to receive the yarn fiber strand so that the strand rotates with the motor shaft; and

FIG. 6 is an additional embodiment of the yarn guide means for my false twister in which a single opening is provided through the wall of the hollow motor shaft with the opening being spaced a substantial distance from the end of the shaft.

Referring now to the drawings for a better understanding of my invention, I show in FIG. 1 a two for one twisting and attenuating apparatus in which a supporting frame is indicated generally by the numeral 10. An elecic motor 11 is mounted on supporting frame 10 and has a pulley 12 thereon about which belt 13 extends. Pulley 14 is secured to a vertically disposed shaft 16 which is mounted in suitable bearings 17 on frame 10. Shaft 16 is hollow and receives a fiber strand S from the attenuating apparatus.

An outer tubular column 19 receives shaft 16 and bearings 21 support shaft 16 in column 19 for rotational movement relative to column 19. A supply can 22 is secured to column 19 and supports a plurality of yarn supply pack"- ages therein which are adapted to be drawn and twisted. The yarn may be formed from a single supply package or, if desired, a plurality of plys may be used to form the yarn.

A flyer disc 24 is mounted on shaft 16 for rotation therewith and has a fiber passage therethrough communicating with the hollow shaft to receive the fiber strand indicated by the letter S. A tensioning device 27, preferably in the form of a piece of wire or the like, is mounted on the periphery of disc 24 and the fiber strand S is wrapped therearound to obtain proper tensioning.

A support disc 31 is mounted on top of column 19 and a drawing or attenuating unit indicated generally by the numeral 32 is supported thereon. The attenuating unit comprises a plurality of pairs of drawing rolls 33 between which the strand S passes. Drawing rolls 33 are driven by gear 34 through suitable means, not shown in the drawings. Gear 34 is secured to shaft 16 and I- tates therewith relative to disc 31 and column 19.

A magnet 36 is mounted on supporting frame by rods 35 and holds can 22 and column 19 along with the attenuating apparatus 32 against rotation with shaft '16. Flyer disc 24 is preferably formed of a plastic material and therefore, it is not attracted magnetically thus being free along with shaft 16 to rotate relative to tubular column 19 and the attenuating apparatus 32.

A package building apparatus 37 is arranged above attenuating apparatus 32 and on the same side of flyer disc 24 as attenuating apparatus 32. The drive for the package building apparatus 37 is indicated as being from pulley 38 which is driven from motor 11. Belt 39 extends from pulley 38 to pulley 41 on shaft 42. Shaft 42 has a gear 43 on an end thereof to drive the package building apparatus through gears 44 and 46. Yarn package 47 is mounted on shaft 48 which is mounted in vertically extending slots 49 on arms 58 so that package 47 may be moved vertically as the yarn builds up thereon. Shaft 52 rotates in contact with the periphery of yarn package 47 and the package increases in diameter as the yarn is wound thereon.

To hold the fiber strand as it is being wound on package 47, a take-up roll 53 is mounted between arms 54 of a bracket over shaft 42. Shaft 42 runs in contact with take-up roll 53 and extends through arms 54 to hold the yarn against rotation between roll 53 and shaft 42. For further details of the attenuating, twisting and package building apparatus, reference may be had to my prior Patent No. 2,867,967, issued January 13, 1959.

' The present apparatus diifers from the apparatus in Patent No. 2,867,967 which has been described above by the addition of the false twister and shock absorbing 7 means shown in enlarged view in FIG. 2 and which is disposed between flyer 24 and take-up roll 53 as shown in FIG. 1. The false twister comprises a small electric motor 58 having brackets 59 by which motor 58 is fastened to support member 61 by securing means 62. Motor 58 has a hollow shaft 63 through which passes yarn strand S.

Shock absorbing means is indicated generally by the numeral 66 and is shown diagrammatically in FIG. 2. The shock absorbing means comprises a freely floating roll 67 adapted to move vertically. Roll 67 is mounted for relative rotation on an arm 68 which in turn is resiliently mounted at 69. Arm 68 is pivotally mounted at 70 for movement in a horizontal plane. A plurality of openings 71 are provided in arm 68 to be aligned selec: tively with the pivot 70 to vary the force at which roller 67 is moved vertically. A pointer 72 at the end of arm 68 operates with a graduated gauge 73 to indicate the tension in the yarn strand S passing over roll 67. As the tension in the yarn increases, roll 67 moves downwardly to move pointer 72 upwardly as viewed in FIG. 2 thereby to indicate a higher tension in yarn strand S passing over roll 67.

An idler roll 74 is provided to change the direction of yarn strand S and a guide roll 76 is provided adjacent take-up roll 53 to position yarn strand S properly at takeup roll 53. FIGS. 3 and 4 are enlarged views of hollow shaft 63 in which yarn receiving groove 78 is provided on the outer end surface of hollow shaft 63 so that yarn strand S may be passed therethrough and rotate With shaft 63. Groove 78 preferably is approximately /a of an inch deep and causes the yarn strand S to rotate with the shaft. The surface defining slot 78 is beveled to decrease the friction between the yarn strand S and shaft 63 as strand S enters hollow shaft 63.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are different embodiments of strand guides in the hollow motor shaft to allow the yarn strand to rotate with the shaft.

FIG. 5 is an embodiment of hollow shaft 63 in which an opening 79 is provided through the wall of shaft 63 and receives yarn strand S therethrough so that relative movement between yarn strand S and shaft 63 is prevented.

FIG. 6 is an additional embodiment of the hollow shaft and discloses an opening 84 which extends through the wall of hollow shaft 63 at a distance removed from the lower end of shaft 63 The embodiment shown in FIG. 6 generates more friction between strand S and shaft 63 than does the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 since opening 84 is spaced a substantial distance from the lower end of the shaft 63 and friction between the outer surface of shaft 63 and the strand below opening 84 is obtained.

False twist motor 58 provides a false twist in yarn strand S between the take-up roll 63 and flyer 24 and thus increases the strength of the yarn strand S while the yarn generates a figure of revolution about attenuating apparatus 32. By increasing the resistance to breakage of the ballooning yarn about the attenuating apparatus, higher speeds can be obtained with the only limitation being friction provided by air drag and centrifugal force.

As a specific example, with size 10s American cotton yarn of 1 inch staple on a two for one apparatus with a flyer disc 10 inches in diameter and rotating in a clockwise direction at 4500 r.p.m., the false twist motor 58 was rotated at a speed of 8000 r.p.m.; about 4000 turns of which are effective, the remaining 4000 turns being lost due to slippage. A take-up roll of a 1 inch diameter was rotated at approximately 200 rpm. and the turns per inch (t.p.i.) as the yarn strand S left the flyer disc 24 was 7 with the t.p.i. of the yarn strand S at the motor 58 being 21. Thus, the ballooning strand S between flyer disc 24 and motor 28 had a t.p.i. of between 7 and 21. The false twist was removed at take-up roll 53 leaving a t.p.i. at take-up roll 53 of approximately 14. Thus, strand S between motor 58 and take-up roll 53 has a t.p.i. between 21 and 14. By testing, a proper balance can be obtained between false twist and true twist to provide maximum strength without adding too much false twist to damage the fibers in each count of yarn.

The t.p.i. to obtain maximum strength in the above described yarn using the aforementioned formula; t.p.i.:twist multiplexyarn count with a twist multiple of 4.60 and a yarn count of 10s would be 14.5. In simi lar two for one apparatus without a false twister and using similar yarn, a t.p.i. at the flyer disc of 7 is obtained and a t.p.i. at the take-up roll of 14 is obtained. Thus, the ballooning yarn has a t.p.i. between 7 and 14 if the false twister is not employed. It is obvious that without the false twister, the t.p.i. of between 7 and 14 would not obtain the maximum strength and that such yarn would be more apt to break than yarn in which maximum strength is provided. By varying the rotational speed of the false twister, the desired false twist can be obtained in the ballooning yarn to match the requirements of yarns having different counts and staples, and the false twister thereby insures maximum strength at all times during the ballooning. The t.p.i. at the flyer and at the take-up roll is not affected by the false twister and remains the same whether or not the false twister is employed.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that I have provided a false twister for imposing a false twist in ballooning yarn of a two for one twisting apparatus so that maximum strength in the yarn is obtained at all times during the ballooning and the resistance of the yarn to breakage is increased thereby. This results in the twisting apparatus being operated at higher speeds than heretofore possible as the limitation on the speed of the flyer disc has been only the speed at which the ballooning yarn breaks. Further, the present apparatus provides shock absorbing means to aid in maintaining a constant tension.

While I have shown my invention in several forms, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible of various other changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof, and I desire, therefore, that only such limitations shall be placed thereupon as are specifically set forth in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In apparatus for producing packages of yarn, a strand supply package, a set of drawing rolls to which the strand is delivered from the supply package, a rotatable flyer positioned to receive the drawn strand directly from the drawing rolls and form a ballooning figure of revolution about the package and drawing rolls, a hollow shaft rotating on an axis that is generally in axial alignment with the path of movement of the strand through the drawing rolls and at one end of the balloon to place a false twist on the strand passed from the flyer through the shaft, means on the strand receiving end of the hollow shaft through which the strand passes to engage a wall of said shaft to allow the strand to rotate with the shaft, and means receiving the strand from the hollow shaft to hold the strand against twisting.

2. In two for one twisting apparatus for drawing and twisting a fiber strand into yarn, the combination of a supply package of untwisted fiber strand, :1 set of drawing rolls, means to feed the strand from the supply package to the drawing rolls, a flyer positioned to receive the drawn strand from the drawing rolls and rotating in a plane generally normal to the path of movement of the strand through the drawing rolls to form a ballooning figure of revolution about the drawing rolls and the supply package, a hollow rotating false twister at one end of the balloon through which the strand is passed directly from the flyer and having a strand receiving guide located substantially on a line which is an axial extension of the path of movement of the strand through the drawing rolls, said guide allowing the strand to rotate with the twister thereby to place a false twist in ballooning yarn between the flyer and the false twister, and means receiving the strand from the false twister to hold the yarn against twisting.

3. In two-for-one twisting apparatus for drawing and twisting a fiber strand into yarn, the combination of a supply package of untwisted fiber strand, a set of drawing rolls, means to feed the strand from the supply package to the drawing rolls, a flyer positioned to receive the drawn strand from the drawing rolls and rotating in a plane generally normal to the path of movement of the strand through the drawing rolls to form a ballooning figure of revolution about the drawing rolls and the supply package, means to feed the strand from the package through the drawing rolls and thence to the flyer, means to hold the strand against twisting, and means at one end of the balloon and between the rotating flyer and the strand holding means located substantially in a line which is an axial extension of the center of rotation of the flyer to impose a false twist to the ballooning yarn.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 177,861 Martin May 23, 1876 1,436,312 Gr-ondahl Nov. 21, 1922 2,143,203 Maxham Jan. 10, 1939 2,143,417 Johannessen et al. Jan. 10, 1939 2,318,162 Jones et a1 May 4, 1943 2,463,619 Kiinzle Mar. 8, 1949 2,586,037 Heflelfinger Feb. 19, 1952 2,867,967 Starnes Jan. 13, 1959 2,947,136 Arridge et al Aug. 2, 1960 2,990,674 Stoll et al July 4, 1961 

